Chris & Neef - We Bak

Young Chris and Neef Buck may have traded their former stage name, “Young Gunz,” for the self-explanatory “Chris & Neef,” but listeners worried that the switch signifies a departure from the twosome’s hard-nosed roots can breathe a sigh of relief; when the Philly natives announce “We Bak like we never left,” on this new mixtape single, they’re telling the gospel truth. Certifyd mans the boards on this street banger, cooking up a beat featuring staccato synths, midtempo percussion, and about as many firearm-related sound effects as one record can hold; the State Property alumni, of course, come with lyrical aggression to match, spitting about robberies-turned-homicides, bodies in trash bags and (of course) plenty of gunplay. Will these currently-independent Northeastern mainstays succeed in taking their game to the next level under their newly-streamlined moniker? You decide – or reserve judgment till July 23, when Chris & Neef’s Back to Business mixtape hits the ‘net for free download.